The 8 July budget - a 12 point action plan from AoC

AoC returned a detailed budget submission to HM Treasury on 5 July 2015. The full document (10,000 words) is available here . AoC submission to the Budget 5 June 2015.pdf AoC submission to the Budget 5 June 2015.pdf (PDF,745 KB) We make 12 recommendations to the Treasury including: * the need to take account of college lead-times when making public spending savings * the case for a rationalisation fund and a new approach which avoids needlessly sustaining unviable provision * the case for government to tackle costs created by its own policies (for example pensions, VAT and exam fees) * the need to protect the £4,000 full-time funding rate and the funding per student for 16 to 18 year olds (something we have also argued for in a joint letter with school and college associations) * the case for maintaining 16 to 18 education numbers to ensure that everyone stays in education until 18 in the coming years when the 16 to 18 population is falling * the case for education sector wide action to increase the supply of Maths teachers * the need to tackle systematic issues like poor careers advice and employer engagement if the government wishes to ensure 3 million apprenticeships. A longer note on the 3 million apprenticeship target is available here https://www.aoc.co.uk/blog/3-million-apprenticeships-2020-%E2%80%93-quite-challenge-not-impossible * the case for continuing adult skills funding for those who can't benefit from apprenticeships while also extending FE loans to ensure that education and training levels don't decline. Apprenticeships are necessary but 25 million adults will be unable to access them because they do not work full-time * the risks in hasty devolution of budgets and the sense in testing a outcome agreement model to improve local accountability for national spending * the case for a wider ranging review of financial support for 19+FE and HE * the need for a coherent approach to capital funding